Horn

[Lenny Bruce]

Hi fellas… So I have a Spartan 6V Ooga horn
On my ,30 Tudor. It looks brand new inside and out. If I had to guess the previous owner purchased it installed it and never used it before he passed. The reason being it wasn’t working when I purchased the car. I fixed the wiring but the horn sounds sickly!! Their is the adjustment which works fairly decent but just sounds like the horn isn’t getting enough juice? Can I be missing something?

[Badpuppy]

Could be horn button not providing good ground. Touch a ground to the ground side of the horn (NOT the yellow wire) to check.

Could be 12V horn?

[Redbird]

Take off the cover. Light oil on the front a rear bearing pad, and a light sandpaper to the stator.

[Ray in La Mesa]

Push down on the horn button with the palm of your hand and rotate a number of times to break up the corrosion on it's contact. If that's the problem you will hear an improvement in the sound.

[eagle]

If you really want to know, put a voltmeter right at the horn. Its possible you could have a voltage drop somewhere, but checking voltage while running the horn will tell you the story.

[burner31]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

Follow post #3, then turn adjustment screw out a few turns, hit the horn and let it high spin a few seconds, repeat a few times, turn adjustment screw in (one click at a time) until you get the right sound.
And are you sure it's a 6V?

[Lenny Bruce]

Thanks,yes the plate says it’s a 6V

[Chuck Sea/Tac]

I’ve found a) clean commentator with an eraser
b) oilbearings, sometimes I use kroil to clean and lube
c) sometimes take apart and clean the brush holders and connections.

[Marshall V. Daut]

If you are testing the sound with the engine off, it is not unusual for the horn not to work properly. Maybe it did on the day it came from the factory and for years afterwards, but for some reason, Model A horns need a little more juice these days it seems, even on restored cars. How often do you really honk the horn when parked?
To get a more realistic sound from your horn, put the transmission in neutral. pull the handbrake back, start the engine and pull the hand throttle down a few notches to simulate driving speed. NOW make your adjustments. I'll bet your horn sounds much better. Of course, now that you have the cover off, follow other suggestions posted so far to give you the best chance of achieving a true Model A "AHOOGA!" sound.
Marshall

[Synchro909]

Marshall just beat me to it. My thoughts exactly.

[CHuDWah]

Originally Posted by Lenny Bruce

Thanks,yes the plate says it’s a 6V

Doesn't necessarily mean the horn is. You said it looks brand new - is it repro? Those have 6V plates regardless of actual voltage.

[ETAModel]

I had the devil's own time getting the back on after removing the long screw. I hope it doesn't need oiling again anytime soon.

[Robert/Texas]

I’ve owned both of my A’s since 1989. What I do when the horns sound weak is to spray some solvent on the armatures while they are spinning. Next, I squirt a few drops of oil on both ends. This works for me for about three years and the 6-volt horns are loud even when the engines are not running.

[Chuck Sea/Tac]

Originally Posted by ETAModel

I had the devil's own time getting the back on after removing the long screw. I hope it doesn't need oiling again anytime soon.

Be careful with that long screw. Some repo screws are too long and will short out against something inside. I had no problems for several times, then it shorted and burned out the stator.